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Never Mind War, James Brown. What Are Councillors Good For?

Mystery surrounds the whereabouts of Councillor Stephen Padmore, who has attended only two of the 33 meetings he was expected at from June 1 2011 to June 1 this year.

And then there’s Cllr Madeliene Long…

In the last six months of 2011, Cllr Long attended just three out of her 10 meetings, though she has upped her appearances this year.At last week’s meeting, while councillors discussed the ongoing problems of betting shops in Deptford – the ward neighbouring Cllr Long’s – News Shopper found her in the lobby watching the climax of Italy vs Germany in the Euro 2012 championships on the council TV.

And how much are they paid?

Both councillors are on a basic allowance of £9,812 – that’s £4,906 for each meeting Cllr Padmore has been to. Local government rules state councillors must attend at least one meeting every six months.

/facepalm

Cllr Long’s poor record has been partly blamed on her chairing of South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, for which she receives a salary of between £55,000 and £60,000.But Cllr Maines said: “If she can’t manage both, she’s got to give one up.”

Well, quite!

And when they do actually turn up, they don’t deal with important issues, but rather squabble and fight like toddlers over who gets to suck up to the popular kid in class:

Conservative councillor for Aveley, Maureen Pearce, has voiced her disappointment after two Labour councillors Phil Smith and Martin Healy did not support her motion to congratulate the Queen on her diamond jubilee at the last full council meeting.

*sigh*

Cllr Healy told the Gazette he did not support the motion because he isn’t a royalist.He said: “ As much as I like and respect Her Majesty the Queen, I am simply not a royalist.

About OoL

We are political and apolitical – some belong to parties, some do not. Some are self-professed libertarians, some are small “c” conservatives, some classical liberals – the names are varied. However we all have one thing in common, a love of personal liberty; that casualty of the encroaching state as it seeks to micromanage our lives. [Link in main menu]